These are the primetime adult television viewing figures for October 2021.
If you can't see the listing below, then click this link to access them in a document instead:
Top Shows on TV: October 2021.
Glossary
R = Repeat
O = Omnibus
Special notes
Saturday real estate on S3 goes up
The Saturday Omnibus of The Estate achieved a turbo boost of ratings this month, attracting a record 625,717 viewers, almost 100,000 viewers more than the previous high for the Omnibus of 529,123 viewers
in April.
It's the first time the show's attracted over 600,000 viewers (for either the primetime or Omnibus broadcast) and the first time its been at No. 2 on S3.
The primetime broadcast continues
its poor performance with 286,902 viewers so what's going on? Why the record Omnibus ratings?
Our theory: more people have become aware of it because of the SABC1 broadcast and are tuning in at the weekend because it clashes with other shows in its primetime weeknight slots.
Idols now officially out of tune
Idols continues its low ratings after losing a third of
its viewership in August, declining even further than then with 683,814 viewers for its most watched episode in October.
Flashback: it plunged from 1,018,607 viewers in July to 693,760 viewers in August.
It increased marginally to 709, 655 viewers for its highest episode in Sepember and now it's back under 700,000 again.
If you can't see the documents above, here's an overview of the Top 5 shows per channel/broadcaster:
SABC1
| Show |
Viewers |
| Uzalo |
7,099,635 |
| Generations: The Legacy |
5,926,095 |
| Skeem Saam |
4,728,245 |
| *Xhosa News |
2,897,085 |
| Zulu News |
2,890,505 |
Please note: Skeem Saam was included twice so we've removed the second instance to make the Top 5 more representative.
SABC2
| Show |
Viewers |
| Muvhango |
3,643,585 |
| 7de Laan |
1,097,923 |
| Muvhango -O |
974,234 |
| Tlhakantsuke |
875,945 |
| Ke Nyala Mang |
821,448
|
SABC3
| Show |
Viewers |
| Qatar Fifa World Cup:Ethiopia vs Bafana |
968,107 |
| The Estate-O |
625,717 |
| Animal Babies:First Year on Earth |
517,765 |
| The Passion of the Christ |
499,465 |
| Natures Great Migrations |
470,467 |
e.tv
| Show |
Viewers |
| Scandal |
5,254,139 |
| House of Zwide |
4,493,251 |
| Imbewu |
3,816,520 |
| Durban Gen |
2,796,464 |
| Alvin and the Chipmunks |
2,615,876 |
DStv
| Show |
Viewers |
| Gomora |
1,586,831 |
| Uyajola 9/9 |
1,502,492 |
| The Queen |
1,374,631 |
| Uthando Nesthembu |
1,158,861 |
| Mnakwethu |
980,298
|
Please note: these ratings don't include viewership from DStv Catch Up, YouTube, Viu or eVOD. They only reflect the viewership of people who watched on the day, at the time of broadcast.
For an explanation of the TAMS, please see:
The TAMS Ratings Explained.